Senior portraits project ideas.

[Pirouette]

i took senior portraits for a friend. this is the first senior portrait Ive ever done. I normally do darker stuff, edgy and angry or extremely flirty and fun. Also concert photographer. She wanted hers done outside in her grassy field (not my element) and something her parents would like (cutsey family also not my element).

I we took them outside, and the lighting wasn't good at all. i managed to save a 1/4 of them but the rest were unusable.

I've edited the photos that needed to be edited. B&W a few, added grunge textures and some other stuff. I was just trying to think of some fun stuff for her to have to choose from to kind of bulk up the selection.

I was thinking about making her into some pop art .
do you have any ideas/projects of what i could do that is good for senior portraits?
I really dont want to make this tacky

 

[Dylan-Fishman]

It sounds like this job isn't right for you, or as you say "not your element". If you think you're going to do a bad job then don't do it. Senior pictures have to be very nice and pop art won't really cut it....

When is this happening?

 

[musicaleCA]

Sounds like they're already done. The grunge textures seem popular in that market, as are roughly textured frames and things like that.

As for lighting, quick tip; next time bring a friend and a large white diffuser.

 

[Pirouette]

Well it was a close friend of mine, so she asked me to do it.
And I only charged her $20 for labor and time.
The photos don't look bad at all. They actually look really good.
I just wasn't sure how to edit them.

And since it's a friend, I know she'll like the pop art thing, I'm just not sure what her parents would want >.>

 

[musicaleCA]

Perhaps you should ask them then? People generally take kindly to a person trying to provide them with exactly what they want, even if it means checking and double-checking.

The white diffuser is more to make a bad situation better; you noted that the harsh daylight was forcing you to junk the vast majority of your photos. Having a diffuser handy would cut down the harshness and give you more photos to choose from.

 

[athomasimage]

A couple of comments about seniors:

Seniors much like adults are all different. They have different expectations. Some are more outgoing than others. I try to find out what they expect from their sitting. I invite props and accept sitting suggestions from seniors.

Parents are requested to be present with their senior student. I don't need a senior making claims about behavior without another person there.

You have two customers to satisfy with seniors: the student and the parent. I try to shoot to satisfy both including joking with the student about poses and backdrops geared for the parent. Then they are told we'll shoot poses they want.

Proofs include some quick samples of "special effects" i.e. B&W, Sepia, Hi-Contrast and I may include a Ccollage. Just to give them some ideas and gete their imagination started.

I learned a while ago that the client doesn't always like what I think is cool! I just sell them what they want.

Just my $.02 worth.